


blame it on me

by leviadrache



Category: Cardfight!! Vanguard
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-05
Updated: 2016-01-05
Packaged: 2018-05-12 01:24:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5648653
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leviadrache/pseuds/leviadrache
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kai says it's not his fault Gaillard got ill, Gaillard disagrees and Miwa just likes their regular Saturday morning calls.</p>
            </blockquote>





	blame it on me

**Author's Note:**

  * For [HolyEmpress](https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolyEmpress/gifts).



> i wrote this for my fic trade with alice! they asked for gaikai ft. kai bad roommate toshiki.  
> i'm super glad that we did this, because it was a very enjoyable experience and i had a lot of fun, much more fun than one would expect at first. also this is sorta old, but i kept procrastinating to post this fic publicly lmao. anyhow i hope you enjoy the gaikai!

"So, how are you?" Miwa asks. His voice sounds cheerful through the speakers of Kai's phone. Especially if you consider it's seven in the morning in Japan. Time for their Saturday morning calls. Kai thinks a little about the question. Usually a shrug was enough of an answer for Miwa, but it's a little harder when they're on the phone. Miwa knows Kai is a man who lets actions speak louder than words, but like. It doesn't work like that on the phone.

Texting is one thing. Something easy. Something Kai can handle. But calls are on a whole different level.

"I'm okay." He wants to flinch when he realizes how hesitant his voice sounds. Fortunately, Gaillard is already asleep, so it doesn't matter.

"That's good." Miwa replies, then yawns. "Ahh, sorry," he laughs and Kai sees an image of Miwa rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess I'm still a little tired."

Being tired seems to be a common problem for the two of them. Kai knows about Miwa's tendency to not get enough sleep. How couldn't he know, after all those texts in the middle of the night when they were in high school. Texts Miwa sent to ask if Kai was okay, if he ate something, why he wasn't at class. Stuff that showed Kai that there was someone who cared.

It's a habit Miwa hasn't lost. Once Gaillard figured that out, he laughed. _You're so needy_ , he said, shaking his head. But from that day onwards, Gaillard would regularly send texts, too. Always the same two words.

[you suck]

It's almost a shame Kai can't just blame his lack of sleep on his room mate, he thinks. A shame because Gaillard always found a way to blame all of his problems on Kai. Whether he burned his toast in the morning or when it starts to rain when he's on the way home, Gaillard would always blame Kai somehow.

When he noticed Kai's not sleeping enough, he had laughed. "I hope you won't use that as an excuse to keep me up all night."

"Want me to keep you up all night because Aichi won't?"

On the other hand, Gaillard was the type of person that gets up really early everyday. Almost every morning, Kai would wake to the sound of loud music playing in the kitchen. The annoying, upbeat music Gaillard seemed to like. Or at least, knew that Kai hated it. Music that reminded him he needed to get up as well, to prepare breakfast and get ready for class. That's their deal for living together. Kai cooks and Gaillard cleans.

"How's living in Paris?" Miwa asks and pulls Kai back into the conversation he has right now.

"Good." At least no waking up to loud music during the last few day, Kai thinks. Which was nice, because break just started some days ago. Gaillard didn't turn on any music lately either, as he spent most of the day in bed.

"How's Gaillard?"

"He got a fever," Kai says, not sure what more there was to say. It's, well, weird. Kai isn't really used to sick room mates, barely has an idea who to handle stuff like this.

Though he has to admit he doesn't exactly mind the sight of Gaillard's red face and messy hair, when Gaillard usually is so careful about his looks and behaviour and everything he does.

Just the coughing is rather unsightly. Gaillard also kept his used tissues on the night stand right next to his bed. Kai wonders why he didn't just put them in the trash bin himself, why Kai had to clean up after Gaillard when that wasn't even part of the deal.

The pile of dirty laundry has been growing and growing, too, and Kai, as someone who is used to living on his own, has enough of doing all the work. It's exhausting, taking care of more people than just himself.

"It has been getting cold here recently," Kai tells Miwa, in an attempt to change the topic. "Snow and so on."

"Ohhh, really," Miwa exclaims, excited like a little kid. Kai doesn't need to see him to get the image of his huge grim and his eyes that look at the sky, as if it was snowing, too, where ever he was. "I bet the Eiffel Tower looks amazing, all covered in snow."

"Who knows." The snow doesn't really stay. It's just those small flakes that keep falling all day without ever staying.

They're worse than the snow that stays on the ground, Gaillard said. Because they're small enough to creep inside every inch of your body. Kai had raised his brow, said, that doesn't make sense, but Gaillard just shrugged.

Who knows, he replied and shoved his hands into the pockets of his sweater. It's what one staff member at the orphanage told us every year when we had weather like that. What matters is that you need to stay warm during these days.

He's not sure why he can still remember Gaillard's words this well, but it's not like that matters. Just like the time he came back home, drenched from the rain and Gaillard had thrown a towel in his face. You'll catch a cold like this, he said.

Kai simply laughed. Worried about me? But he took the towel and started to pat his hair dry.

Gaillard snorted. As if. But someone's gotta make sure you don't ruin everything again.

It's almost a nice thing, compared to what he usually said to Kai. Still he decided to leave the towel and his wet clothes on Gaillard's bed. For the lack of a better place to put them. He'd usually just leave his clothes on the bathroom floor anyway. It's Gaillard's duty to do the laundry so in some way, bringing the clothes to Gaillard's room could be considered as helping Gaillard.

Later that evening, Kai was be in the kitchen to prepare dinner when he heard Gaillard yell. Looking back, it wasn't a particularly interesting fight they had afterwards. It didn't last long. Gaillard didn't yell as much as usual. When Kai figured out it's because he seemed to have a sore throat, he was the one to laugh. Sounds like I'm not the one catching a cold, and Gaillard, who seemed to think that signed his defeat, stomped on Kai's foot out of frustration.

"So you think he got sick because of the weather," Miwa interrupts his thoughts once more.

"He says it's my fault he got ill," Kai mentions and Miwa. Miwa laughs.

"So you're sure it isn't your fault," he asks and Kai thinks he's missing the joke.

At some point last week, Gaillard had an important meeting to attend to. He had made sure to wake up earlier than Kai usually did, only to find the bathroom occupied. After multiple, futile tries to knock on the door, Gaillard rose his voice.

"Hey, why are you awake this early!?"

It sounded like Kai replied, but Gaillard couldn't understand what was said. He took a deep breath and tried to open the door. It wasn't locked.

Fortunately Kai had drawn the curtains of the shower. It still felt awkward. For a moment, Gaillard wondered if it was too late to turn around and just skip showering for once. It seemed like Kai hasn't heard him walk in and just leaving would save whatever dignity he had left after having lived with Kai Toshiki for so long.

Only then the water stopped running and Kai pulled the curtains to reveal dripping hair and usual boring expression.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, his voice calm, as if they were talking about what to eat this morning.

"The door wasn't locked," Gaillard said, as if that was suitable as explanation, then added. "I have to take a shower before I go out."

"I still have to wash my hair."

If there is one thing Gaillard knew for certain about Kai, it's that it takes him centuries to get his hair done.

"Can't hurry up or you wash it later?"

"I was here earlier than you."

"But I have to get ready soon."

"Your problem, not mine," Kai says, put the curtains of the shower back and turned the water back on.

And really, that's the moment when Gaillard should have turned around and got dressed without a shower. Except that walking away meant losing to Kai. Maybe it's because it was 5 am (why was Kai even awake, he had no class today, if Gaillard remembered correctly) or because he hated losing more than anything (not to mention losing to people like Kai Toshiki).

He couldn't explain what ran through his mind when he decided to take Kai's clean, folded clothes and threw them into the shower.

"Maybe you should get some new clothes from your wardrobe first."

He heard Kai gasp and open the curtains of the shower to throw the now wet clothes back at Gaillard, who already turned around. There's at least a small hint of dignity left inside him, Gaillard tells himself. Who knows, maybe he got this awful fever thanks to Kai's habit of taking cold showers and throwing wet clothes at other people.

He got the cold just a few days later. Kai had asked him if he needed help. As if, Gaillard had laughed weakly at the suggestion. A laugh that soon mingled with his coughs, but Gaillard pretended it was nothing, so Kai did the same.

Some days later, when the cold turned into a fever, Kai caught Gaillard walking around in their flat. Something about his posture seemed off. His legs were trembling. Upon a second glance, Kai saw how Gaillard's hands were clinging to the counter of their kitchen. Gaillard seemed to freeze when he saw Kai enter the room.

A second of silence passed and Gaillard straightened his back.

"Shouldn't you be resting?"

"Just getting a glass of water."

Kai raised an eyebrow. "It's stupid to leave the bed in your condition."

Gaillard huffed, crossing his arms. "As stupid as almost destroying the world because of some silly selfish reasons?"

Kai opened his mouth to counter that remark when Gaillard started coughing vehemently.

Sure, Gaillard knew walking around on the tiles without socks or shoes wasn't helping his health, but the last thing he wanted was to be caught outside of the bed by Kai. Not when he could barely walk on his own.

"Just say when you need something," Kai had told him after he insisted on helping Gaillard to get back to bed, help he totally didn't need. He knew Kai's offer wasn't based on helpfulness anyway. It seemed like Kai thought he needed the help.

And really. The fact that Kai kept trying to help Gaillard made him angry. Kai Toshiki, who was better at dealing with food than with people. Sometimes when Gaillard got home early or when Kai got home late and dinner wasn't not ready yet, Gaillard would set the table or just sit around in the kitchen and watch Kai work. The care he showed when he chopped up vegetables – the irony that Kai was only gentle to the things he'd destroy seconds later.

The thought that Kai was rather making them better, turned the plain ingredients into lavish and delicious meals is a thought Gaillard blamed on his fever immediately after it enters his mind. The last thing he wanted was to admire Kai.

One time he bothered to mention it to Kai. "You're not always as rough as you act." Kai just stared. Not glared but stared. A nit-picky difference, one would say, if it was anyone else, but a distinction was worth to mention when it comes to Kai Toshiki.

"You're friendly to the food," Gaillard explained. Almost gentle, he thought, but didn't bother to say.

Kai snorted. "That's how it needs to be treated when you want the taste to –"

Gaillard stopped listening.

"He is exhausting to deal with," Kai continues to tell Miwa. Then, a little quieter, adds. "I don't know what to do."

"Hmmm, makes sense. Say, Kai, have you ever taken care of someone before?"

"No," Kai replies immediately. He hasn't.

Back during the few weeks they've lived in the orphanage, before they decided to take a flat in the centre of Paris, Kai would watch over some of the kids while Gaillard was at work. Mostly he'd just play Vanguard with them. None of them were good enough to be a challenge for him. When Gaillard got home, he scowled Kai.

"You're can't just to beat them ruthlessly like that."

"There's no value in fighting someone if you're going easy on them."

"This isn't about value," Gaillard's voice was shaking. He had seemed truly upset. Kai wasn't sure why. "They're kids!"

"They'll be adults one day. It's important to learn about the way this world works. There's no mer-"

Gaillard grabbed his front of Kai's shirt, roughly shoved him against the world. "I don't want to hear any lectures about mercy or how the world works from you." His fingers tightened in the fabric of Kai's collar. They were shaking, Kai noticed. "I want you to act more like a proper human being."

Gaillard took a few deep breaths. Kai stayed silent, pulled the hand away. Gaillard tended to get carried away too easily. Maybe that was just the type of person he was. One minute he was the good big brother and the next he was the knight to put judgement upon whoever dared to interfere with his king's will. A person who seemed to get carried away too easily. Like kids that couldn't decide what they wanted for Christmas.

He was exhausting to deal, honestly, with because each day, there was always something different on his mind.

"Taking care of others is bothersome," Kai tells Miwa.

"Sounds just like you," Miwa sounds amused. "It's easier than you think."

"How?" Kai asks and Miwa laughs.

"You're cute," he simply says and Kai can hear the grin in his voice.

"I'm asking you for advice," Kai says, definitely going to ignore that , "not for your opinion."

"But you do realize that it's really sweet of you to ask for that? Makes me wish my immune system wasn't as flawless as it is. You know, so you can take care of me too."

"..."

Miwa texts him shortly after the call ended.

[just keep an eye on him if he's being difficult]

He turns of the light of his room and notices that the lights of the kitchen are turned on.

The tiles feel cold on his bare feet, but he doesn't feel the need to put on socks. As he gets closer to the kitchen, he can hear the sound of the radio. It's quietly playing a song. Kai can't recognize the lyrics, but it has a cheerful ring to it. When he's right in front of the kitchen, he pauses a second, to take in the voice of the singer. It's a sweet joyful voice. She sings in French, Kai realizes after listening more closely. The sound of the language gives off a soothing feeling, and Kai, already half asleep, stands in the hall for a while. Just breathes and listens.

It's when the song is coming to an end and the melody trails off, Kai hears the quiet humming. He opens his eyes, wonders when he closed them, before he takes a look inside the kitchen.

He spots Gaillard on one of the chairs, with his back to the Kai, facing the window. The curtains Kai usually draws closes after he cleaned up the kitchen in the evening are pulled open. The window itself is open, too, lets the cold air of the night enter their small kitchen.

Is being sick that much fun, Kai wants to ask, but stays silent instead. He doesn't feel like starting an argument right now, too tired to bother. Gaillard hasn't seemed to notice him. For a moment, Kai considers turning around to go back to sleep, but since going to sleep in his case meant spending another few hours staring at the ceiling, he steps into the kitchen.

The radio is already playing the next song which seemed to be an English one this time. Kai doesn't know any of the songs on the radio, doesn't listen to a lot of music anyway. Gaillard, as the type of person who knows about every song on the radio, hums again. His eyes are closed, Kai notices, and his knees are drawn up against his chest. While he wears a sweater over his pyjama, obviously against the cold night air, he had no socks or shoes on. Kai really can't tell if Gaillard is freezing or not. There's a mug with cocoa in his hands, thought it looks less like he wants to drink and more like he's warming his hands with the fabric of the mug.

There's a small smile spread of Gaillard's face. He still looks anything but healthy and yet.

(Content is the word Kai's searching for, but can't find.)

Kai doesn't want to disturb Gaillard for some reason and yet does as he sits down on the other chair. Gaillard's eyes immediately crack open, his whole body tenses. He glares at first, then gives Kai a startled look, before he built up his usual composure.

"What are you doing?", he asks, as if Kai just interrupted him on something intimate. (And some part of Kai feels like he has. Overstepped a certain border. Invaded too much of Gaillard's personal space.)

That's what I should ask you, is what Kai almost shoots back, but then doesn't. He doesn't feel like it's has the right to start a fight in this situation. Isn't sure why. Because Gaillard is already sick and beating someone who isn't in his strongest form has no value? Because Kai felt like he is intruded something he shouldn't? Because he was too tired too care?

"Making sure you don't kill yourself," is the response that leaves his mouth instead. It's not completely a lie.

Gaillard snorts, but doesn't say anything else. He doesn't start humming again, but the radio keeps playing. They sit next to each other in silence.

Kai feels awkward at first, having destroyed Gaillard's peaceful moment, but soon, Gaillard closes his eyes again. Except a smirk took the place of the smile from earlier. Now Kai grins, too, mimics Gaillard as he leans back in his chair and closes his eyes.

It's not uncomfortable.

_I should close the window if I don't want to get ill as well_ , Kai thinks, but can't gather up the strength to move.

When Gaillard hears Kai's breathing turn into quiet snoring, he gets up from his chair to close the window. Somehow, the cold night air feels ten times better, healthier than the sticky air of their living room.

He wonders if he should bother with carrying Kai to his bed, but quickly drops the idea. It's not worth the hassle. Instead, he gets some of the blankets from Kai's room, puts them over his usually annoying but now peacefully sleeping room mate, before he takes back the spot on his own chair.

Living together isn't always bad.


End file.
